Nicolas Cage’s Dracula Could Return After Renfield Bomb, Hints Director

Renfield director Chris McKay hints that Nicolas Cage’s Count Dracula could make a triumphant return, despite the first film’s disappointing box office performance. Only pulling in $26.7 million in worldwide box office against a budget more than twice that amount, Renfield’s lackluster financial performance was a bitter disappointment for Universal, who had previously failed to launch their shared Dark Universe plans with 2017’s The Mummy. Despite an intriguing premise and a talented cast led by Nicholas Hoult and Cage, Renfield divided critics and largely failed to reignite widespread interest in a potential revival of Universal’s classic monster characters.

Yet despite Renfield’s box office woes, McKay recently spoke with Empire magazine (via SyFy Wire) and hinted that Cage’s time as the Prince of Darkness may not yet be finished. Suggesting that Dracula is still alive, despite being dismembered by Renfield at the end of the film, the director teased that his body could still come back together. He also suggested that his movie left the door open for the famous monster hunter Van Helsing to make an appearance in a possible sequel. Check out his comments below:

“Renfield’s going to cement those bits with holy water and then spread them out presumably around the world. But inside each of those cells, Dracula is still alive, and may eventually come back together.

“There are choices that we made to suggest that there’s a world of vampire-hunters out there. It would not be a huge leap to suggest that Van Helsing would [still] be out there.”

Why Nicolas Cage’s Dracula Deserves A Second Outing

Though Renfield had its fair share of flaws, the decision to cast Cage as the world’s most famous vampire was not one of them. Renowned for his unique energy and eccentricities, Cage’s performance as Dracula was just as energetic and delightfully bizarre as the film’s various teaser trailers promised. Imbuing the character with a pitch perfect blend of comedy and creepiness, Cage’s take on the character is worthy of direct comparison with some of the more iconic performances of Bram Stoker’s infamous bloodsucker.

While it may be tempting for Universal to cut their losses and leave Renfield’s disappointing performance behind them, Cage’s tenure as Dracula still has the potential to usher audiences back into their classic monster universe. The actor himself has already suggested he would be interested in helming his own solo Dracula movie, and without the distractions posed by Renfield’s assorted supporting characters, Cage could truly be given room to shine in the role.

At this stage it is unknown whether Universal will seek to greenlight a Renfield sequel or spinoff. However, if they do, it would be folly to attempt to do so without including the actor responsible for giving the first film its strongest and most memorable performance. There is still plenty of potential for the studio to deliver a successful classic monster universe, with Cage’s Dracula front and center to those plans.

Source: Empire (via SyFy Wire)